Take Thee My Hand
by Xenolord
Summary: [Yuffentine] Yuffie and Vincent go into Mako Reactor 4 to search out Deepground soldiers. Catastrophe follows. Set after Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus. Again, Yuffentine.


Disclaimer: I don't own Square Enix or FF7. Vincent Valentine, Yuffie Kisaragi and all other related characters are property of Square Enix, not me.

Author's Note: YUFFENTINE! A hahaha. Sorry, this idea just kinda came to me. This takes place about three weeks after Dirge of Cerberus.

Take Thee My Hand

As he looked back, he couldn't help but feel pain.

As he looked back, he couldn't help but feel anger.

As he looked back, he couldn't help but feel disappointment.

All with himself.

The monster called Vincent Valentine.

-One Day Earlier-

Some time after the incident with Chaos and Omega, he had finally began to regain some facade of normality back within his life. He had laid down his arms and taken up the repairs of Midgar seriously. It was nice to, for once, not have anything to worry about.

"...cent..."

He had to admit, the women in his life, at one point or another, had all lied to him. The most recent one the most. That's the one that left the biggest dagger in his heart.

"...incent."

At first, he thought that he had finally found someone he could be happy with. Someone he could settle down with. But... Hojo. One stupid incident over the course of one stupid night had left him lifeless and struggling for survival. That was the end of the Vincent that everyone knew.

"VINCENT!" A voice broke him from his reminiscing. He looked around, trying to find the fool who would dare break his chain of memories. He scanned the room he was in, looked at the TV, at the door and finally at the window to his left. "Oi. Down here." The voice called again. He looked down to his left. He remembered now... it was six AM, he was sitting upright in bed with a bed-head ridden woman next to him. "Finally!" She smiled, reaching up and kissing him. "Thought you'd never snap out of it."

"Sorry about that... Yuffie." He groaned, slinking back under the covers. He was so used to sleeping in a coffin, that the return to the mattress and sheets was a bit unsettling at first. But Yuffie was good, always giving him time to adjust.

"What'cha thinkin' about?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his left arm, the one that, no matter what, always had a metal gauntlet on it.

"Just the past." He replied, shaking her question off. The moment he got settled back into bed, his phone rang. "If that's Shelke, she better not friggin' call me by my full name... I hate that shit..." He groaned, reaching over and grabbing the noisy phone off his bedside table. He looked at the display. "Oh. Never mind. It's Cloud." He fliped the lid open. "Cloud?" He continued.

"Vincent! Glad to see you awake. Listen, you busy?" He asked, something in his voice said 'preoccupation'. Vincent looked at the back of Yuffie's head as she tried to sleep.

"Depends on your definition of the word 'busy'." Vincent muttered half to himself.

"What?"

"Nothing. No I'm not too terribly busy. What's up?"

"A WRO Squad went into Mako Reactor Four late last night, and no one's come out. I was wondering if you were up for a little Spelunking." There was a hint of a joke in his voice.

"Ah jesus... I hate this shit..." Vincent groaned, pulling the phone away from his ear. He quickly put it back. "Yea, I'll be right there. Just gimme some time to get dressed."

"Yea. One last thing, though. You have any idea where Yuffie ran off to? I can't get a hold of her phone, and her land line is disconnected."

"I have... a... pretty good idea where she is, yea."

"Well, when you see her next, tell her to keep her phone on!"

"Beh. I'm not your messanger, Cloud. Tell her yourself. Yuffie, phone for you." He put the phone next to her ear.

"Hi Cloud!" She called into the phone. Vincent clicked the speaker phone button.

"I'm gonna assume that you're just over at Vincent's house for some convenient reason, and that you two aren't in bed."

"Bad assumption." Both Yuffie and Vincent echoed.

"Yea, ya know what? Whatever, just get the Reactor checked out sometime in the future, okay?" Cloud was sounding slightly disturbed by this, but he tried to ignore it.

-Mako Reactor 4-

Dark. Why does everything have to be pitch black? Vincent and Yuffie stumbled around aimlessly around in the dark, trying to find a light switch, even a candle, anything just to see better.

"Why?" Yuffie echoed in the corridor. "Shinra was a light company! Why is everything always so friggin dark!" She called.

"Dunno. I guess we should have brought a flashlight, huh?" He muttered. Something caught the side of his vision. It was a thin strip of light coming from under a door.

"Hey! Look light!" Yuffie called, running towards it. Vincent followed. Something rang wrong with Vincent. Something unknown. Yuffie threw the door open.

"FIRE!" A male voice shouted, Vincent grabbed her by the waist and pulled her away as a volley of bullets skipped off the door and wall.

"STAND DOWN! WE'RE FREINDLIES!" Vincent called into the door. The gunfire stopped.

"Identify yourselves." The voice spoke. Vincent poked his head out the door.

"I am Vincent Valentine. And the woman you just about perforated is Yuffie Kisaragi. Are you the WRO Squad sent in last night?"

"We are, sir. Terribly sorry for the mistake. Are you okay Mrs. Kisaragi?"

"Yea... Yea I'm fine... just REALLY shaken up. Thanks for the save, Vince."

"Why is it so dark in here?" Vincent muttered.

"We shut the power down. Makes it safer. We're not sure if they're any Deepground soldiers here, but we can never be too sure."

"Why were you sent in?"

"Clear the area, but we haven't seen any soldiers, so I can only assume that we're done."

"Right then. Let's move. And turn the power on while you're at it." Vincent muttered. The leader nodded and threw a couple of toggles on the wall, the power returning. By the looks of things, only six or seven of the WRO Troops were still alive. "What happened to everyone else?"

"The place started falling apart, and we lost a few men. We can't find them anywhere."

"Okay. We have to move. The exit is down the hall. I'll lead. Yuffie, mind bringing up the rear?"

"Okie dokie!" She called, falling in behind the WRO.

The path was a straight shot. The WRO soldiers ran behind Vincent as he blazed the trail ahead. The Mako Reactor was old and decrepit, but enough of it still existed to make for good cover, should the time call for it. For some reason, exiting the reactor took longer then coming in. Vincent's phone rang.

"Huh?" He grunted into the receiver.

"Vincent Valentine." Shelke's voice came clearly from the other side. "I've been monitoring your progress, and you are going deeper into the reactor." Vincent stopped.

"What? How can that be? This is the way I came in."

"That may be, Vincent Valentine. But the fact remains that you are going farther in." Vincent thought for a moment.

"You lookin' at the right plans?" He groaned. "We're in Reactor Four." The line went quite.

"It seems I need to begin reading titles. Terribly sorry for disturbing you, Vincent Valentine." She closed her phone.

"Who was that?" Yuffie asked from the back.

"Shelke making up for ten years of perfection with a couple weeks mistakes. Come on. The exit's over here." Vincent continued to lead them out.

Light. Light at the end of the tunnel. The WRO were glad to finally be out of that Hell Hole. Reeve met them at the door and congratulated them on getting out alive.

"Vincent. Yuffie. Can I have a word?" Reeve asked. The two nodded. "I hope I'm not imposing, but I could really use you two going back in and making sure that there really are no Deepground soldiers in there. I know the squad gave me their report... but I don't feel right."

"Sure." Yuffie answered for Vincent. "Come on, it'll give us a chance to be alone." Vincent agreed and they bravely went back into the Mako Reactor.

"You're always itchin' to be alone with me, aren't you?" Vincent muttered after a while, breaking the awkward silence. Yuffie smiled and nodded. Behind his cloak, the gunner returned her smile. Although, something wasn't right. "Look out!" He shouted, grabbing her shoulder and pulling her away from a collapsing support. When the dust settled, her held her at arms length. "That was too close..." Yuffie didn't respond. "Yuffie?" He asked her, looking at her in the low light. She wasn't moving. "Yuffie?!" Something wet pierced his lether glove on his left hand. He pulled it up to his face.

Blood.

"Yuffie?!?" He asked, more assertive.

"I guess..." She choked out, struggling to speak. "Love... really does hurt. I'm glad... we shared our time together... my love..."

"Oh, don't you say that! Don't you say that, Yuffie!" Vincent was paniking now. He grabbed the phone out of his pocket and quickly dialed #VIN.

"Vincent Valentine." Shelke answered on the other end.

"Cut the small talk, Shelke! I need a medic standing by outside Mako Reactor Four NOW!" He shouted into the receiver. He picked Yuffie up and jammed the phone between his cheek and shoulder.

"What is the matter?" She continued. He didn't answer, he just ran silently down the hall. He discarded the phone in a hurry. "Vincent Valentine?" No answer. "Vincent Valentine! Respond! Damn!" Shelke spoke, turning the connection off. Vincent and Yuffie were about twenty minutes into the reactor, so it took about that long to get out. Reeve and Shelke were outside when he exited.

"Where's the damn medic?!" Vincent shouted, lying Yuffie's body on the ground. In the fading evening light, he could see the extend of what happened. Five holes were in her chest where her heart was. The holes corrisponded with... fingers. Vincent looked at his left hand. Claws... the glove... "N-no..." He muttered. Shelke looked at him when he said this. "N-NO!" He retracted away from the medics trying to save Yuffie. "**NO!**" He shouted once more, running off.

"VINCENT!" Reeve called after him. Vincent only disappeared behind a building. "What on earth..."

-Present-

As he looked back, he couldn't help but feel pain.

As he looked back, he couldn't help but feel anger.

As he looked back, he couldn't help but feel disappointment.

All with himself.

The monster called Vincent Valentine.

He looked down at the blood dripping from his golden glove. The same glove that had been the end of so many Deepground soldiers, also meant the end of everything that he ever cared about. He managed to sneak past the other WRO and retrieve his phone from the reactor. He flipped the lid open with a shaking hand and punched in a few numbers.

"Pound... C... L... O..." He muttered as he pressed the corresponding buttons. He put the phone to his ear and waited.

"Vincent? What's up." Cloud asked on the other end. Vincent couldn't speak for a while. He opened his mouth several times before Cloud spoke again. "Vincent? Hey, you there Vincent?"

"Cloud I..." He began.

"You okay? You don't sound yourself... What's wrong?"

"I killed her, Cloud... I killed her..." He repeated.

"_What?_ Who? Who, Vincent? Who did you kill?" Cloud asked, trying to get a straight answer.

"I killed her, Cloud... I killed her... I killed her..." He kept saying.

"_**WHO**_, Vincent? WHO did you kill?"

"I... Killed Yuffie..." He was zoned out of everything, barely able to talk. Cloud went silent for a while. He couldn't think Vincent was serious. But... It's Vincent. He's always serious.

"Please..." Cloud finally found his voice. "_Please_ tell me you're trying to be funny. If you are, Vincent, this isn't the way to do it."

"I killed Yuffie... I killed her... I killed Yuffie... I killed her... I killed Yuffie..." He kept repeating.

"VINCENT!" Cloud shouted into the speaker. "Vincent, get a hold of yourself! Where are you?"

"S-" He started. "Sector Two. You can't miss me... Follow the signs..." He was still zoned, but able to form cognitive thought and speech.

"What signs, Vincent. Stay there, I'm coming for you."

"The signs... Cloud. Follow the signs. Monster... Demon... Murderer... The signs, Cloud. Follow the Signs..." He clicked the phone off and let it slide down the roof he was perched on.

-Some time Later-

Cloud managed to find Vincent on the roofs of one of the buildings. He was simply sitting there, shooting at the occasional piece of paper that rolled by. Cloud reached him when he was reloading.

"Tell me what happened, Vincent." Cloud spoke firmly, standing over him. His left hand was hidden under his cloak.

"Mako Reactor Four... Deepground... Yuffie and I... Collapse... The reactor is falling apart! LOOK OUT YUFFIE!" He reached out to someone with his right hand, but stopped. "I can still feel it. I can still feel... her heart fade... grow weak... and then silence... I killed the only person who ever saw me for what I was... The only person who cared for me... genuinely care... You can't know how that feels..." He uncovered his left hand. "I had to... repay my deed... I had to destroy that which destroyed me..." His gauntlet covered hand had been crushed almost beyond recognition. His fingers were broken and his arm useless.

"Vincent... what the hell?" Cloud asked. Vincent smiled, looking up.

"I wonder..." He mused. "I wonder if this is how Lucrecia felt when she destroyed me..." He flicked his gun open and looked at the chambers. "One in each chamber. Funny. I named him Cerberus. I guess that's my next stop. Hey, Cloud. You've been a great friend to me, and I want you to know that if not for you, I'd still be in that box..." He stood. "But I also want you to know that if not for you..." He drew a bead on Cloud. "None of this would have happened!" Cloud stared at the three barrels, not flinching. "I want to repay your kindness Cloud."

"Vincent. If you plan on doing what I think you're planning on doing, you better make sure the first shot kills me. Because I won't give you a chance to reload." Behind his crimson veil, the gunner smirked.

"Do me a favor, Cloud. Don't give me a swift death." Vincent's finger began to pull back on the trigger. The sound of Cloud's phone ringing delayed the action. Cloud answered it.

"Go ahead." There came a pause. Cloud nodded. "I think it's best for you to tell him yourself." Another short pause. "Because he's got his pistol pointed at my head." Cloud pushed a button on the keypad, and faced the phone to Vincent.

"Vince... Is that you Vince?" Yuffie's voice came over the phone speaker. Vincent's eyes went wide.

"Yu... Yuffers? Is that you?"

"Yea... it's me Vince. Don't do anything stupid. I'm fine... just come back... I miss you. I want to see you again..." Vincent dropped his arm and put his gun away. Cloud nodded.

"I'll be right there, my love." Vincent nodded to Cloud, who switched off his phone. There was an awkward pause between the two friends. "I can't believe I almost shot you."

"I can't believe I almost killed you." Vincent smiled at Cloud's remark.

"You seem so sure of yourself."

"Omni-Slash. Hello." Vincent laughed, joined by Cloud.

-Outside Mako Reactor 4-

Vincent ran next to the slightly bleeding but very much alive Yuffie. He grabbed her in a hug and pulled her close. She could have sworn she saw him cry a little.

"I'm so happy you're okay... I'm so glad you're alive!" He shouted, pulling her close and hard.

"Vince... you can let go... I can't breath."


End file.
